1) The Bible

The Bible ranks first among the most translated books in several languages, transcending all borders. Originally written in three languages (Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic), the entire Bible (Old and New Testaments) has been translated into 704 languages and dialects as of 2021, reaching 6,100 million speakers worldwide. 

The Bible is also the most printed book in the world.  As of 2020, 5 billion copies have been printed, making it the most translated bestseller in the world.

 

 

2) The Little Prince (France) 

Created by the French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince is in second place when counting the number of target languages. It is one of the greatest classics of the 20th century. Although it is considered a children's book, along with the illustrations created by the author himself, it contains metaphors that are not easy for children to understand but more catered to adults. 

This philosophical story published in 1943 has been translated into 475 languages. 

One highlight is that translation number 300 was into Hassaniya, a dialect of Occidental Sahara. To write this work, Saint-Exupéry found inspiration in Cape Judy, a region in the desert where this language is spoken to the south of Morocco.

 

 

3) The Adventures of Pinocchio (Italy) 

Originally written in Italian, a famous puppet that turns into a boy was published in 1883. Since then, it has been translated into 260 languages.

The original tale was written by Italian Carlo Collodi between 1881 and 1882 in a series of tales called The Adventures of Pinocchio and published as comic strips in the Giornale Per I Bambini newspaper. There have been many adaptations and versions of various formats: theatrical, cinematographic, tales of 50, 20, or 6 pages, and even comics and coloring books and cutoff. The best-known adaptation was the film version by Walt Disney Studios, released in 1940. 
 

 

 

Published in 1865 in English, this book has been translated into 174 languages. The story of Alice and her misadventures in a fantasy world has marveled millions of readers.

The author of Alice in Wonderland was called Charles Lutwidge Dodgson, but he signed his works under the pen name of Lewis Carroll. British by birth and being a writer, he was a mathematician, photographer, and deacon of the Anglican religion. 

The tale was first created in 1862 for the daughters of Carroll’s friend, including Alice Liddell, who was ten years old at the time. She was so fascinated by it that she urged Carroll to make it a book, finally published in 1865.

It is one of the most popular and influential short stories in history, with hundreds of adaptations and mentions in other literary works, film, television, theater, opera, video games, and art. Even in science and medicine, where the neurological disorder that causes the patient to perceive objects much smaller than they are was named after the book.

 

 

 

5) 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (France) 

Jules Verne's Captain Nemo story has been rewritten in more than 170 languages, starting with its original French version. The famous book, published in 1870, has since become an international without a doubt undoubtedly one of the most important works of classical literature first publication was not entirely but instead published by chapters in the Magasin d'Éducation et de Récréation magazine, from March 20, 1869, to June 20, 1870. 

Jules Verne was a man ahead of his time, with a gift for blending engineering, science, and literature in his works. He has been called the father of science fiction on several occasions, considered a revolutionary in science and the inventor of the logbook.

 

 

6) Andersen's Tales (Denmark)

Originally published in Danish, Hans Christian Andersen's tales have been translated into more than 150 languages, as varied as Esperanto, Azeri, and Bengali. These works include The Ugly Duckling, The Little Mermaid, The Princess, and the Pea, and The Snow Queen, to name just a few.

The author is best known for his children's stories, some inspired by Nordic tales and legends, but most of them were invented by him and characterized by great imagination, humor, and sensitivity. His more than two hundred stories, some translated into many languages, have been republished. He was considered an author during his lifetime and has become one of the classics of children's literature.

 

7) Testament (Ukraine) 

With more than 150 translations, the book by the Ukrainian Taras Schevchenko is also one of the most translated in the world. It is a poem written in 1845 detailing his testament. It is considered a literary work of art in the Ukrainian culture, in which Shevchenko captures the liberation struggle of his people.

 

 

8) Don Quixote (Spain) 

Originally titled El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quixote de la Mancha, this Spanish novel written by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was first published in 1605. Since then, the book has been translated into 145 languages. This makes it the oldest book among the most translated, after the Bible.

Much of the work was written while Miguel de Cervantes was in prison, serving a sentence for possible errors made in his career as a tax collector in Seville. In the prologue, he describes his time in prison and how Don Quixote came to mind while serving his sentence.

In 1608, Don Quixote was translated for the first time into English by the Irishman Thomas Shelton, an almost literal version of the text and not well understood. Years later, other translations surfaced, not literal and of better quality.

Thanks to the lexicon and vocabulary in Don Quixote, many theorists claim that it has helped improve the Spanish language and consider it a transition into modern Spanish.

His contributions to modern Spanish, such as the study of his life and works, are known as Cervantism.

 

9) The Adventures of Tintin (Belgium) 

The characters in The Adventures of Tintin have traveled all over the world. Written by Belgian artist Hergé and published between 1929 and 1976 in French, the comic series has been translated into 115 languages.

On January 10, 1929, the young journalist Tintin, and his faithful dog, Snowy, appeared for the first time in the comic strip Le Petit Vingtièe in the Belgian Catholic newspaper Le Vingtième Siècle. Since then, Tintin has become the protagonist of one of the most important comics in Europe.

 

 

10) Asterix the Gaul (France)

This comic by Albert Uderzo and René Goscinny has been translated into 115 languages since its first publication in 1960. 

The names of all characters have meaning in the French language, and it helps identify the Gallic and Roman characters. Gallic names usually end in -ix and Roman names in -us. The appendix "-ix" references the famous leader of Gaul, Vercingetorix. 

The comic features many words and expressions created by the authors themselves. For example, "For Toutatis!" is used to express terror. Toutatis was a Celtic god of ancient Gaul and Britain. He was a protector of tribes. The name derives from the root teuta-, which means people or tribe, cognate with the Germanic root *þeudo. This posed an additional challenge to translators, who had to be resourceful to translate the puns into their respective languages.